G-String is a literal work that focuses on the dilemmas of a middle-aged woman who is struggling to find her identity. The story follows a woman who is trying to impress her not-so-admirable husband who is commanding in the fact that he prefers being addressed as ‘mister’ ( Captive of a G-String: Analysis of Literary Techniques, 2017) . In G-String, the woman looks to impress her husband who seems not so much impressed by his wife. At the same time, the woman, Gillian, looks to find her sense of fashion by wearing a G-String. The push to wear the G-String comes from a dress seller who believes that wearing the G-String undergarment would revolutionize her womanhood and live to her expectations.
Gillian is torn between addressing her newfound identity and reverting to her old imperfect self (Halpern, 1999). She is yet to decide what works for her in a world that looks strange and not too familiar to her. She can connect her experiences to similar things such as the feeling a horse has when it is first girdled. She is not sure the effort to embrace modernity is worth it. Gillian feels uncomfortable under the new garment and the respect and admiration she seeks seem farfetched. Her comparison to a horse and a lamb is meant to have the reader develop a sense of how backward she is. A horse is girdled but in her case, she puts the G-String by her effort. The comparison is meant to have people question the credibility of the changes some of us are willing to make in their lives just to feel like we belong.
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In the work G-String, Barker draws a picture of uncertainty. Before the G-String, Gillian feels like an incomplete woman (Halpern, 1999). She feels outdated and the desire to change is improved when her husband tells her that she needs a new outfit. At this point, she is sure that changing her looks will earn her husband’s respect and it would make him appreciate him the more ( Captive of a G-String: Analysis of Literary Techniques, 2017) . At the same time, the conviction from the dress seller hinges her towards embracing the need to change. After putting on the G-String, Gillian finds herself questioning her decision. As she is not able to make out whether or not it was a good idea to change into G-String, she creates a picture of uncertainty.
At the same time, Barker uses the G-String as symbolism. Gillian is living in a world where women are judged by how they present themselves. As such, society requires women to change to a certain level. The G-String is a strong symbol of how much change is needed. It is a revolution of women’s undergarments that represents change which can impact a society.
Barker curved her story in a way that humor leaves the reader with fewer questions about the actions of the people in the depicted society but rather how much modern society we are living in is changing who we are. A person is left wondering how much a person is willed to sacrifice just to feel like they belong. The imagery created by Gillian on a G-String is a strong indication that people care about what society has to say about them. By depicting Gillian struggling under the G-String and the new dress, we are left wondering if the situations we are willing to transform to are worth the effort and whether we are better off without changing who and how we are.
Gillian is married to a man who depicts two personalities. At first, Mr. Kip is presented as an understanding, loving, and caring man. We are assured that he loves his wife as any man in love would. However, things take a turn when he insists that his wife needs a change of clothing to conform to modernity. At the same time, Barker depicts Mr. Kip as a self-aware man. His insistence on being called “Mister” is baffling ( Captive of a G-String: Analysis of Literary Techniques, 2017) . There is no given situation where his wife shows any signs of disrespect to him. She even goes as far as wearing a G-String to make him happy. However, the husband seems less impressed which Barker uses as a way to depict duality in that he tells his wife to get a new dress, and when she put it together with something more he seems less impressed making him a hard man to understand.
The G-String by Barker not only depicts change but also alienation. Gillian questions her past and present which she intends to change ( Captive of a G-String: Analysis of Literary Techniques, 2017) . She has a profound personality and she respects who she is. At least she has something she can call her own no matter how outdated it seems. However, when she wears the stringed G-String, she can feel herself adopting a new personality with her old one fading away. In this case, being sexy and appealing does not feel the same as she was expected but rather a new thing that was not part of her goals. Her blemish character is hilariously compared to molars which occupy the innermost part of the mouth. Her incapacitating lack of fashion taste makes her unique in that everything about her has shortcomings when compared to the society she is living in.
References
Captive of a G-String: Analysis of Literary Techniques. (2017). Retrieved July 22, 2020, from
https://newyorkessays.com/essay-captive-of-a-g-string-analysis-of-literary-techniques/
Halpern, D. (1999). The art of the story: An international anthology of contemporary short stories . New York: Viking.
